During the June 28 rally in Gyumri the first president of Armenia Levon Ter-Petrosyan announced that on March 1 neither the police nor the army fired at the people. “These murderers are criminal elements. Part of them is from Karabakh and the rest is the skinheads of the famous oligarchs,” said Levon Ter-Petrosyan. When speaking to us the director of the union of political scientists Hmayak Hovhannisyan mentioned that this statement is very important for him because this assumption was drawn during the sessions of the committee on investigating the March 1 events. We interviewed Hovhannisyan and spoke about this issue and others.
– We established committees, which should examine two issues. They must first of all find out who benefited from the bloodshed of March 1 and whether some interested groups are not against these crimes and that not the police or army but these groups opened the fire. Those could be bodyguards of oligarchs and illegal businessmen. If we review this issue in depth than the tragedy should have deepened the gap between the people and the government. There are a group of people, who are interested in deepening this gap. These people are called oligarchs. Only the deepening of the crisis in the society can make their role indispensable for the government. If the supreme government in the face of the president stops needing the service of oligarchs the clan system will be destroyed and the president will have the trust of the people.
– Do you know any oligarch, whose bodyguards would open fire at the people?
– We must be very cautious giving any names until the committee is done with examining and investigating the March 1 events.
– Are there any names, who you doubt could send their security to the people to shoot at them? You don’t have to mention names.
– All those oligarchs, rich people, who have long run political goals, who invest in politics by offering electoral bribes, those who established artificial parties may be in the list of potential assassins.
– Besides that what other versions are circulating in the committee?
– Another version is the benefit of the parties. For example, who did Artur Baghdasaryan’s turn to the government affect the bloodshed? Would the law-enforcers do what they did if Baghdasaryan didn’t state that he won the elections by 70% and he is not going to quit the struggle?
– It means they are examining contradicting versions. On one hand they claim that the law-enforcers were quite confident in their actions but on the other hand they claim that the police and the army didn’t open fire.
– Today we have to deal with different versions. If we succeed in proving that the police and the army didn’t shoot at people we will be able to annihilate a serious scar from the image of our country. If it is not the police, army or the government, who shot at the people but some criminal elements, who are not authorized to carry guns it means that a huge sin will be washed from the “forehead” of the country. Here we can mention some malfunction on part of the law-enforcers, who were not able to prevent the activities of the criminal groups but not the cruelty of the law-enforcers. Our examination and investigation will show which of these versions is truthful. Six working groups have been established. Each of these groups investigates one version. They try to accumulate as mush material as possible; established a database. Later we will combine these efforts and the outcome of the activities and have a joint picture.
– Who participates in the working group sessions?
– There are political scientists, law-enforcers, practical employees. The list includes Arman Navasardyan, Vladimir Karapetyan, Karapet Rubinyan, Souren Abrahamyan, Hrayr Ulubabyan, famous attorneys Vladimir and Yuri Hayrapetyans, Tigran Ter-Yesayan, Hovik Arsenyan, etc.
– What concrete results do you have?
– We are already fully formed and are at the stage of active work. Today it is too soon to speak about results. We have difficulty including professional political scientists in the group activities. Therefore we are planning to incite international experts.
– When speaking of the versions you spoke about the abrupt decision of Artur Baghdasaryan. What other similar versions are you examining?
– Various factors played their role on the events. I mean the role of the intelligentsia and the church. Three years ago when I was an MP and late Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan was still alive I raised a question about the increasing number of people, who attempt to commit suicide. I offered to establish a governmental committee in participation of the Pope and other representatives of Holy Echmiadzin. In the eyes of the society the meaning of the human live is being devalued. In this background the amount of suicide increases among people. At that time I didn’t receive any answer to the question that I raised. The church should have played its unique role in appeasing the tension in the society.
– During his July 1 press conference Ter-Petrosyan publicized the assignment of the head of the special investigative service on March 5 addressed to the prosecutor of Vayots Dzor marz Mr. Palyan. Will this document also become a subject of examination of the committee?
– Of course we must examine any more or less interesting document. We were not able to get introduced to those documents because of the curfew.
– Mr. Hovhannisyan, there is a viewpoint in the society that Ter-Petrosyan gives up his high position in the political arena and that the approaches of the first and the incumbent presidents are becoming similar.
– This assumption is based on the statement of Ter-Petrosyan, who said that he is not inclined to exaggerate the issue o the legitimacy of the government.
– But there is also an opinion that only Ter-Petrosyan gives up his position and the government doesn’t do anything but spread words about starting dialog with the opposition.
– So far I would say that the opposition camp makes attempts of agreeing with certain points. Ter-Petrosyan’s statement that his final goal is not to be elected president for the second time but there are 10 people, who can substitute him as well as the fact that Ter-Petrosyan was speaking of Serzh Sargsyan as the de facto president, shows that certain pre-conditions of dialog can be launched. Meanwhile the opposition claims that these pre-conditions may become substantial if the issue of the political prisoners is solved.
– But most often the government makes calls for dialog.
– The government makes only declarative calls about fulfilling the requirements of the PACE. But we haven’t seen anything more substantiated on their part.
– Doesn’t it mean that the first president is giving up his positions and the government continues its rough policy?
– It means that at this moment when the activists of the movement are in prison. For the opposition the number one priority is to get ensure the release of the prisoners. Ter-Petrosyan also mentioned this numerously in his speeches.
– When will the results of your examination be publicized?
– I have mentioned during the last discussion that without at least one electronic media source the situation cannot be objectively solved. That is the reason why we raised the issue of the A1+ TV company. If our roundtable was aired we would probably have more support from the public because there are many people, who witnessed the March 1 events and may provide information to us. They are psychologically depressed and scared. That is the reason why they shun providing information. The media and especially the electronic means of communication must help the people to recover people’s confidence.
– Can you approximately mention when your surveys will be over?
– I think it is not a very easy issue to be able to complete it within a month or two. A lot depends on the dialog between Sargsyan and Ter-Petrosyan. After that we will be able to receive necessary information and documents about the events of March 1, which are currently locked tight. Only after the survey of those documents will enable us to objectively assess the situation. Sargsyan constantly feels the breath of Kocharyan in his back. That is the reason why the dialog doesn’t take place. Sargsyan would really benefit from fulfilling the direct requirement of the PACE – start a dialog with the opposition.